Bridges of Paterson County

29 October 2026 / Written By:Chris Cameron, Photos: Denise Birrell

With this run cancelled back in 2025 due to unsafe weather, it was great to finally get it under way, with 22 members lining up 14 MX-5’s at Morpeth wharf on a sunny Sunday morning. The original plan to dip our toes in the Hunter River at both the start and the end of the run sadly had to be dropped when we discovered on the reccy run that the water access at the last bridge was down a steep unkempt bank. That aside, it was all systems go, starting with a potted history of the development of the different styles of bridges we would cross. To fit the run into one day, it simply wasn’t possible to cross all the historic bridges around the Hunter, so the run was created to encompass 13 of them, with construction dating back to between 1887 and 1906. Of these 13 historic bridges, there are 5 different types still in existence – the Allen Truss, the DeBurgh Truss, the iron lattice, the steel truss, and the old Public Works (PWD) timber truss design.

 

Then we were off, over the first of 3 Allen Truss designs, starting with the iconic Morpeth bridge then through the veggie growing alluvial flats to Hinton Bridge, which is the first of two timber bridges with central lifting spans to accommodate vital river traffic linking many Hunter towns with the port at Newcastle. Looping back towards Maitland, Dunmore bridge came next, then north towards Paterson for the first of our iron lattice bridges. Constructed from steel from England and Belgium, this style of bridge was used for wider crossings for both road and rail between 1870 and 1893.

At Clarencetown we used the newly opened concrete bridge, running parallel with the with the old PWD bridge which had to be replaced after it was irreparably damaged by a truck in 2023. Taking some of the smaller rural roads from this point, the convoy enjoyed lots of twists and turns, arriving in Dungog to stop for morning tea at Frank Rodinson Park beside the timber truss Dare design Cooreei bridge. The park was shady and very pleasant, with the only minor ‘inconvenience’ being that the ladies had to avail themselves of the men’s facilities after it was discovered that both ladies’ toilets were out of service. A group wave to and an acknowledging toot from the passing XPT saw us pack up and hit the road for the second stage of the run. 

    

Not far out of Dungog we came up behind a caravan whose driver sadly ignored ample opportunities to pull over for us. Sixteen km’s later we parted ways with the caravan, crossing the Gostwyck steel truss bridge at Martins Creek and, after passing through the township of Vacy, we crossed their Allen truss bridge. Once again the convoy enjoyed cruising the quiet country roads through to East Gresford, where we turned back towards Singleton. This took us past farms and horse studs to Beckers Bridge at Webbers Creek – another DeBurgh timber truss design. Nearing Singleton, we were privileged to follow a beautifully restored green 1937 Ford Tudor 2-door coupe for a few km’s out on what we surmised was her Sunday Drive Outing. Just gorgeous! After crossing the Middle Fallbrook DeBurgh bridge at Glennies Creek, we progressed into the roadworks for the Singleton By-pass, then over the steel truss Donolly Ford bridge to our lunch stop at Singleton Diggers.

After a leisurely and delicious lunch, we hit the road for the third and final stage of the run. Heading north-east from Singleton, we crossed the concrete bridge beside the Redbourneberry iron lattice bridge which is now used for pedestrian traffic. Taking the very familiar country roads north of the New England Hwy towards Maitland – one of Hunter’s favourite areas thanks to the lovely sweeping turns and little regular traffic – we crossed Elderslie iron lattice bridge and rejoined the highway.

Reaching Lochinvar, we turned towards Luskintyre for the last bridge of the outing. Thankfully, the dreaded roadworks traffic lights on Windermere Road were flashing orange, allowing everyone to pass through without lengthy delays. After crossing the Luskintyre bridge, we doubled back and parked either side of the road for a group photo, before saying our goodbyes and departing for home. Thanks to everyone for coming along and listening to the bridge histories along the way. Special thanks to John Purcell for preparing the run sheet, the bridge overview and the historic comments used along the route. For anyone interested in more information on the Hunter’s historic bridges, Transport NSW has an excellent document detailing the construction information, building history and bridge locations Historic Bridges of the Hunter Valley.